OCZ 512MB Rally Flash Drive Review

Introduction

With the many companies that produce flash drives, only a few company brands are known for their blazing speeds. One of these companies is OCZ. Their Rally product line is designed by OCZ to be considered the fastest and most reliable flash drive on the market. Sporting dual-channel memory in a USB 2.0 flash drive, OCZ is definitely one of the fastest on the market. The ultra-sleek design and durability are also key marketing points for this drive.

Today we will be taking a look at OCZ’s 512 MB offering from the Rally product line. This 512 MB sample claims raw horsepower transfer rates of up to 28 MB/s (read) and 15 MB/s (write). Can this drive really reach such high transfer rates? Well, without forgetting about OCZ’s implementation of Dual Channel Technology in this drive, we will find out soon enough.

Features

The OCZ 512MB Rally Flash Drive is designed for raw speed. We will not be seeing very many perks with this drive other than its speed, however, for the majority of flash drive users out there, speed is all that matters!

High Speed USB 2.0 Certified

True Plug and Play

Compatible with Windows and Mac OS X

Dual Channel Technology

2 5/8″ Long and 5/8″ Wide

Aluminum Chasis

Blue LED Status Light

Lifetime Warranty

Up to 28 MB/s Read-speed

Up to 15 MB/s Write-speed

OCZ currently offers the Rally flash drive in 512 MB, 1 GB, and 2 GB capacities. However, the larger capacities do not get as high read transfer rates as the 512 MB version. The 1 GB version can reach transfer speeds up to 25 MB/s read and 17 MB/s write and the 2 GB version can reach transfer rates of 23 MB/s read and 17 MB/s write. This is not a very big difference between read speeds, but noted for those who want the fastest possible transfer rates.

Also take note that OCZ is offering a lifetime warranty with their Rally Flash Drives. This is something that not all flash drive manufacturers offer and something that will help set OCZ above the competition when trying to decide which flash drive to purchase. Now that we see the features in writing, let’s take a look at the actual performance!